Milvus migrans govinda

Bhigwan Bird Sanctuary & Uma Maheshwaram Temple Complex, Telangana

This is the third in the series on tropical raptors, starting with the Crested Serpent Eagle and then the Changeable/ Crested Hawk-Eagle. Today is about a medium-sized, rather nondescript raptor with overall dark plumage called the Black Kite (Milvus migrans) or as it is known in India, the Black or Small Indian or Pariah Kite (Milvus migrans govinda).

Fast expanding cities and human habitations have pushed many species to the the brink of extinction but some have adapted to these drastic changes in their habitats. They have succeeded in not only surviving but thriving amongst the towering constructions and ever expanding human habitation. The black kite, a medium-sized bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, is one such bird. This bird is thought to be the world's most abundant species of Accipitridae, although some populations have experienced dramatic declines or fluctuations.

Some of the Accipitridae I have already talked about earlier are the Harriers from Kumbhargaon -

Pallid Harrier

Montagu’s Harrier

Eurasian Marsh Harrier

Black kites are medium-sized birds of prey that are widely distributed over four continents. They are thought to be the world's most abundant species of raptor. These birds are generally dark in color with brown upper plumage but the head and neck tend to be paler. The patch behind the eye appears darker. The outer flight feathers are black and the feathers have dark cross bars and are mottled at the base. The lower parts of the body are pale brown, becoming lighter towards the chin. The body feathers have dark shafts giving it a streaked appearance. The cere & gape are yellow, but the bill is black. The legs are yellow and the claws are black. Males and females have the same plumage but females are longer than males.

Bhigwan Bird Sanctuary

When one looks to the south of Bhigwan, one sees the wide Ujni backwater wetlands, illustrated in the 16 photo single row panorama below, a shallow waste water reserve formed by the discharge of water from the Pune region dams like Panshet, Pawna, Khadakwasla, Varasgaon, Temghar, etc. This semi waste water has created an excellent wetland based ecosystem supporting a large variety of water birds, both endemic & migratory, and also helped with the local agriculture. Nearly 300 species of endemic and migratory birds have been recorded here. The rainfall in the Pune region decides the water level in Ujni dam. Lesser the water, the shallower it is and therefore more birds make it their home in the winter.

Kumbhargaon is a nondescript village in the Satara district to the south of Bhigwan, a quaint, small & rugged town on the border of the Pune and Solapur districts in Maharashtra, in India. During its mild winters, Kumbhargaon, Bhigwan and its surrounding areas become the home of countless migratory birds making it the “Bharatpur of Maharashtra”. The area around Bhigwan and the River Bhima is vast and unique with diverse habitats ranging from the shallow wetland ecosystem of the Ujni backwaters to the surrounding rich farmlands and dry deciduous scrub forest with interspersed grasslands. 

To the south of Bhigwan, bereft of any hills, lie the wide Ujni backwater wetlands, a shallow waste water reserve formed by the discharge of water from the Pune region dams like Panshet, Pawna, Khadakwasla, Varasgaon, Temghar, etc. This semi waste water has created an excellent wetland based ecosystem supporting a large variety of water birds, both endemic and migratory, and also helped with the local agriculture. Nearly 300 species of endemic and migratory birds have been recorded here. The rainfall in the Pune region decides the water level in Ujni dam. Lesser the water, the shallower it is and therefore more birds make it their home in the winter.

Surrounding this lush ecosystem are the rich grasslands and fertile farms home to an equally impressive list of birds, mammals and reptiles like the Indian courser, chestnut-bellied sandgrouse, blue-cheeked bee-eater, grey francolin, woolly-necked stork, and demoiselle cranes. The Indian chameleon is often seen here and after dark, creatures of the night like the leopard gecko and termite hill gecko are out and about. Although rare, the common sand boa, rat snake, and Russell’s viper are also spotted. The open areas around the villages host mammals like the black-naped hare, jungle cat, golden jackal, and Indian grey mongoose. The Asian palm civet can also be seen, especially at night. The extensive grasslands protect many mammals like the Chinkara, Hyena, Wolf and Indian fox. It is also popular for grassland birds and the birds of prey, including the Steppe Eagle and the rare Eastern Imperial Eagle. While largely unnoticed, frogs, toads, damselflies, dragonflies, beetles, and scorpions also inhabit the area. A study published by the Zoological Survey of India in 2002 reported 54 species of fish.

I spent a couple of days with great friends - Tirtho, Saugat & Samar (his first ever dedicated birding trip) - in Kumbhargaon village, the winter home for an immense variety of birds like the beautiful Greater Flamingos, Grey Herons, Painted Storks, Brown Headed Gulls, River Terns & Little Terns, the Black-headed & Red-naped Ibis, Little Ringed Plover, Osprey and the Peregrine Falcon just to name a few.

Apart from the grasslands, specifically for the migratory water birds, there are two areas where one can observe:

• the Diksal area &

• the Kumbharwadi area.

So that was about the habitat I have seen this magnificent bird of prey in. Now onto the bird itself.

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Read about the magnificent raptors & other birds from the beautiful Bhigwan Bird Sanctuary

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Black/ Small Indian/ Pariah Kite

The black kite (Milvus migrans) is a medium-sized bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes many other diurnal raptors. It is thought to be the world's most abundant species of the family, although some populations have experienced dramatic declines or fluctuations. The current global population estimates run up to 6 million individuals.

Unlike others of the group, black kites are opportunistic hunters and are more likely to scavenge. They spend much time soaring and gliding in thermals in search of food. Their angled wing and distinctive forked tail make them easy to identify. They are also vociferous with a shrill whinnying call.

The black kite is widely distributed through the temperate and tropical parts of Eurasia and parts of Australasia and Oceania, with the temperate region populations tending to be migratory. Several subspecies are recognized and formerly had their own English names. The European populations are small, but the South Asian population is very large.

The black kite was described by the French polymath Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon in his Histoire Naturelle des Oiseaux in 1770. The bird was also illustrated in a hand-coloured plate engraved by François-Nicolas Martinet in the Planches Enluminées D'Histoire Naturelle which was produced under the supervision of Edme-Louis Daubenton to accompany Buffon's text. Neither the plate caption nor Buffon's description included a scientific name but in 1783 the Dutch naturalist Pieter Boddaert coined the binomial name Falco migrans in his catalogue of the Planches Enluminées. The type locality is France. The current genus Milvus was erected by the French naturalist Bernard Germain de Lacépède in 1799. Milvus is the Latin word for a red kite; the specific migrans means "migrating" from the Latin migrare "to migrate". The red kite has been known to hybridize with the black kite (in captivity where both species were kept together, and in the wild on the Cape Verde Islands).

Subspecies

• European Black Kite (M. m. migrans) – (Boddaert, 1783): Breeds central, southern and eastern Europe, as well as the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa, to Tien Shan and south to northwest Pakistan. Winters in Sub-Saharan Africa. The head is whitish.

• Black-eared Kite (M. m. lineatus) – (J. E. Gray, 1831): Siberia to Amurland S around Himalaya to N India, N Indochina and S China; Japan. Northern inland birds migrate to E Persian Gulf coast and S Asia in winter. This has a larger pale carpal patch.

• Small Indian/ Pariah Kite (M. m. govinda) – Sykes, 1832: Eastern Pakistan east through tropical India and Sri Lanka to Indochina and Malay Peninsula. Resident. A dark brown kite found throughout the subcontinent. Can be seen circling and soaring in urban areas. Easily distinguished by the shallow forked tail. The name pariah originates from the Indian caste system and usage of this name is deprecated.

• Fork-tailed Kite (M. m. affinis) – Gould, 1838: Sulawesi and possibly Lesser Sunda Islands; Papua New Guinea except mountains; NE and E Australia.

• Taiwan kite (M. m. formosanus) – Kuroda, 1920: Taiwan and Hainan; resident.

Black kites can be distinguished from red kites by the slightly smaller size, less forked tail (visible in flight), and generally dark plumage without any rufous. The sexes are alike though the male is a little smaller & less aggressive (this is the case in most birds of prey). The upper plumage is brown but the head and neck tend to be paler. The patch behind the eye appears darker. The outer flight feathers are black and the feathers have dark cross bars and are mottled at the base. The lower parts of the body are pale brown, becoming lighter towards the chin. The body feathers have dark shafts giving it a streaked appearance. The cere & gape are yellow, but the bill is black (unlike that of the yellow-billed kite). The legs are yellow and the claws are black. They have a distinctive shrill whistle followed by a rapid whinnying call. Males and females have the same plumage but females are longer than male and have a little larger wingspan. Their wingspan is around 150 cm.

The species is easily spotted in Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia. The temperate populations of this kite tend to be migratory while the tropical ones are resident. European and central Asian birds (subspecies M. m. migrans and Black-eared Kite M. m. lineatus, respectively) are migratory, moving to the tropics in winter, but races in warmer regions such as the Indian M. m. govinda (Small Indian/Pariah kite), or the Australasian M. m. affinis (Fork-tailed kite), are resident. In some areas such as in the United Kingdom, the black kite occurs only as a wanderer on migration. These birds are usually of the nominate race, but in November 2006 a juvenile of the eastern lineatus, not previously recorded in western Europe, was found in Lincolnshire.

The species is not found in the Indonesian archipelago between the South East Asian mainland & the Wallace Line. Vagrants, most likely of the black-eared kite, on occasion range far into the Pacific, out to the Hawaiian islands.

In India, the population of Milvus migrans govinda is particularly large especially in areas of high human population. Here, the birds avoid heavily forested regions.

In winter, these kites form large communal roosts. Flocks may fly about before settling at the roost. When migrating, the black kite has a greater propensity to form large flocks than other migratory raptors, particularly prior to making a crossing across water. In India, the subspecies govinda shows large seasonal fluctuations with the highest numbers seen from July to October, after the monsoons, and it has been suggested that they make local movements in response to high rainfall.

With that said let’s move on to the gallery of this beautiful tropical raptor.

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